Inflation stories: how the global inflation crisis has impacted people around the world

The primary consequences of inflation are prices going up precipitously, while salaries stay the same, meaning that each paycheck goes less and less far — and that savings accounts go down to virtually nothing as currencies depreciate. 

People are feeling the impacts of inflation all over the world. And since people are more than just numbers and statistics, we wanted to share how individuals have been impacted by inflation.

Real stories: Inflation in Argentina

Carlos Andrada, a 60-year-old self-employed worker, shared with Reuters that financial stability feels long gone. "They've turned us into a country of beggars. After working all your life, you have to fight just to get a tomato or a bell pepper," he said.

Inez Marchesin, who works in communications in Buenos Aires, shared with NPR that getting paid means spending all the money right away. “It burns your hand because you say, OK, I have the money now. It won't have value tomorrow,” she shared. She turns her paycheck into USD the moment she receives it, and deposits the cash into a safe deposit box — not into a bank account.

Claudia Hernansaez works at a publishing company in Argentina, and she’s trying to be optimistic — but isn’t able to save any money right now. "I try to think that someday we're going to be better off,” she told Reuters, “But the inflation we're living with today in Argentina is terrible. It feels like never before. In my case, I have zero capacity to save."

Real stories: Inflation in Turkey

Bahar Ecevit, a 24-year-old store clerk, shared with the New York Times that prices have skyrocketed compared to her salary. “My salary is gone in two days and then I live on the credit card,” This year, she wasn’t able to afford a new winter coat, she added. “We are just living for the moment. We don’t know what we will do tomorrow.”

“Living conditions are difficult, paying rent is difficult, paying at the market is difficult — everything is difficult,” said Ese Gucer, a resident of the southern city of Adana, to the New York Times.

Real stories: Inflation in Nigeria

Jume Hanwa, a van driver in Abuja, Nigeria, shared with CNN that business has all but dried up because he’s had to deal with sky-high fuel costs that came with halting the fuel subsidy. “My children can no longer go to school. We are battling with how to feed ourselves, not to talk of paying school fees or giving them transport money to go to school. Life has become very difficult.”

Muhammed Saliu sells yams in Akute, in Ogun State. He shared with Premium Times Nigeria that profits have all but disappeared. “We are selling to eat, we hardly get enough profit. Sometimes N50 on one yam, some we get N100, N200 gain, while we sell some at the same price we got it just to move fast.”

Doris Nwafor does everything she can to provide for her three children, but it’s become impossible. “Years back, if I go to the market with N10,000, I get something good with the money — but now with my N10,000, I find it so hard to even buy enough foodstuff. My child loves noodles so much, but imagine a carton of a small Indomie that used to be around N1,500 is now N3,000. … It has now doubled in price,” she shared with Premium Times Nigeria.

Cenoa users share about the effects of inflation

Cenoa is a new super wallet app that lets people in inflation-impacted countries save in digital dollars — that are always on par with USD — and find stability and savings growth that felt like it was gone forever. 

A Cenoa user shared that inflation completely devalued their savings, even though they felt they had been doing everything right. “I worked 10 years to build up my savings, but when the rainy day came, my savings melted and became worthless. I feel cheated.”

Working all day, every day, has become the norm in places with severe inflation. Another Cenoa user said,  “I had to find another job on the weekends to keep up with the expenses. Most of my friends are working every day of the week.”

Fight inflation with a smart savings plan — invest extra funds as digital dollars

At Cenoa, we want to help. Learn more about how Cenoa helps protect users from the impact of inflation and currency depreciation.